ARMENIA BACKS OUR IRAQ POLICY, AND WILLING TO DO A

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 YEREVAN 000045

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

STATE FOR EUR/CARC, EUR/ACE, DRL
DOD FOR OSD (J. MACDOUGALL)

E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/11/2013
TAGS: PREL PGOV MASS KPAO AM IR IZ AF GR YI
SUBJECT: ARMENIA BACKS OUR IRAQ POLICY, AND WILLING TO DO A
BIT MORE

REF: A. A) STATE 3592


B. B) USDAO YEREVAN AM 011403Z DEC 06

C. C) 06 YEREVAN 1683

Classified By: CDA A.F. Godfrey, reasons 1.4 (b,d)


1. (C) SUMMARY: Armenia's Foreign and Defense Ministers each
expressed solid support for our Iraq policy, and for the
President's announced changes in Iraq strategy. Both agreed
that our Iraq strategy cannot be allowed to fail, and
reaffirmed Armenia's commitment to sustain its troop
deployment there at least through the end of 2007. DefMin
Sargsian also told us that Armenia is ready to provide
military demining engineer training in Armenia to up to 15
Iraqi soldiers at a time. CDA also delivered a press
conference January 11, drawing points from President Bush's
speech and reftel. Local press coverage focused on Armenia's
continued troop commitment, and our thanks to Armenia for its
deployment. END SUMMARY.


2. (C) DRIVING HOME THE MESSAGE: CDA and Pol/Econ Chief
called separately on Armenian Foreign Minister Oskanian and
Defense Minister Sargsian January 12 to convey reftel points.
CDA conveyed substance of reftel, thanked both ministers for
Armenia's support for our Iraq policy, and left a non-paper
drawn substantially from reftel points. Both ministers
expressed firm support for our New Way Forward, and agreed
that the U.S. and coalition partners must not fail in our
Iraq strategy. The stakes for the region are too high.


3. (C) FOREiGN MINISTER POLITICALLY SUPPORTIVE: Oskanian
assured us that Armenia's commitment to our Iraq policy
remains unchanged, reminding us that the Armenian parliament
had just last month extended the GOAM's authority to deploy
troops in Iraq for another year (Ref C). CDA mentioned that,
during Defense Minister Sargsian's December visit to Iraq
(Ref B),Sargsian had been pitched by Iraqi defense officials
on the possibility of Armenian training (in Armenia) for
Iraqi Border Guards, and that Sargsian had promised to
consider it. Oskanian was unfamiliar with the proposal, but
felt that training Iraqis in Armenia should be both
practicable and cost-effective.


4. (C) THE DEFENSE MINISTER READY TO OFFER IRAQIS TRAINING:
Sargsian also reiterated Armenia's commitment to its Armenia
deployment, at least through the end of 2007, as the
parliament had recently authorized. He thanked us for the
Iraq strategy update, and reported that U.S. Iraq Commander
GEN Casey had foreshadowed to him somewhat (during Sargsian's
mid-November 2006 visit to Iraq),the need for certain
changes in strategy along the lines the President has now
announced. Specifically, the need to transfer increasing
responsibility to Iraqis, while possibly boosting the number
of U.S. forces to help establish security. Sargsian told us
that his ministry was just about finished formulating a
formal proposal on Iraqi troop training, based on the request
put to him in Iraq by Iraqi Defense Minister Qadir (Ref B).
Sargsian said his ministry was ready and able to offer
demining engineering ("sapper") training to Iraqi soldiers in
Armenia, 15 at a time. He said that Armenia had adequate
facilities, instructors, trained dogs, and other resources
necessary to do this. Details would shortly be forwarded to
our DATT. Sargsian told us that he considered the Iraqi
deployment a useful opportunity for his troops, because it
enabled them to see "with their own eyes" the capabilities,
tactics, and professionalism of U.S. and coalition troops in
a combat zone.


5. (C) ...AND CONSIDER SENDING TROOPS TO AFGHANISTAN: The
CDA noted to DefMin Sargsian that our commitment to
Afghanistan was a major theme he heard during his recent
(EUR-IO COM conference) consultations in Washington.
Sargsian indicated that he has given some thought to sending
an Armenian contigent to Afghanistan, perhaps once Armenia's
Kosovo deployment wound down. Armenia had formalized with
Greece a new commitment to double its contingent in Kosovo
(to two platoons),and was working with Greece to embed two
or three officers with the Greek contingent in Afghanistan.
These officers would provide the basis for decisions on
possible future deployments to Afghanistan.

YEREVAN 00000045 002 OF 002




6. (U) PUBLIC DIPLOMACY: The Charge conducted a television
and radio interview in his office January 11 with reporters
from Public TV, Kentron TV, and RFE/RL. The CDA first
delivered remarks, cribbed substantially from the text of
President Bush's speech, slightly modifed to add local
Armenian relevance. He then answered questions from the
journalists, which focused especially on Armenia's
contributions to Iraq and whether we were asking Armenia to
expand its commitment. The CDA thanked the Armenian
government and people for the contributions that Armenia has
already made, and noted that more help would, of course, be
welcome. Responding to a question, he also noted that an
Armenian deployment to Afghanistan would be a welcome further
step. Local media also picked up his comments about U.S.
plans to continue "very significant assistance" to Armenia's
peacekeeping battalion, which provides the Armenian troops
now deployed in Iraq and Kosovo.

GODFREY